The Climate Emergency Action Plan (CEAP) aims to be an equitable plan, but what does that really mean and how is it being done across Canada? Scholarly research about social equity in climate action is largely centred in the United States, so when posed with the task to find Canadian examples it led to this project of comparative analysis.

For the City of Vancouver, it is valuable to understand what cities with similar governance models are doing so that ideas are grounded and realistic. Throughout this process we learned that though there are obvious best practices, Canadian cities are not considering equity and justice enough in their climate action planning. The simple thematic analysis applied for this project highlighted the strengths and weaknesses of each plan, and this formula can be used to better analyze every plan or action proposed.

Within Canada, some of the most popular methods of addressing social equity were addressing food security, enhancing local Indigenous relationships, and encouraging social cohesion to strengthen community responses to climate change. The CEAP currently does not address food security or social capital in any way, but this could be incredibly valuable for a city like Vancouver. Recognizing the power of community is crucial to climate action and enhancing social justice.